Africa-Press – Mauritius. A restitution workshop pertaining to bean seeds in the bean value chain in Mauritius, was held this morning at the Voilà Hotel in Bagatelle. The event that was organised by the Food and Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (FAREI), aimed at discussing and validating the findings of a survey report on the bean sector conducted in 2022.
The objective was to generate recommendations for enhancing the contribution of the bean seed sector to food security. Present on the occasion, the Acting Chief Executive Officer of the FAREI, Mrs M Seenevassen Pillay, underlined that the FoodSec-Semence/SANOI is a key project that seeks to strengthen food security in Mauritius and in the region.
She added that under the project, Mauritius was assigned the responsibility to strengthen the potato and bean seed sectors. Mrs Pillay emphasised that a bean variety rich in vitamins and iron has been found to be a promising crop for cultivation locally, and informed that some 350 kg of its seeds have been produced, among which some have been distributed to Comoros and Seychelles.
The Acting CEO of the FAREI further highlighted that the project is in line with Government’s endeavour to increase the production of pulses locally with the objective of enhancing food and nutrition security.
As for the Senior Chief Executive of the Ministry of Agro-Industry and Food Security, Mrs Moheenee Nathoo, she recalled that the regional project is coordinated by the CIRAD and funded by the European Union for the period 2021-2025.
She remarked that beans are widely consumed in Mauritius and contributes to the nutrition of Mauritians as they are effective source of protein, vitamins and minerals.
She pointed out that the importation of pulses amounts to 13 000 tons to the tune of Rs. 390.7 million and that 80% of our demand for beans is imported. According to her, it is crucial to scale up efforts to produce bean seeds locally in order to cater for our local needs.
Besides, she indicated that in line with Government’s policy to strengthen the bean sector, research initiatives have been undertaken to introduce and evaluate the cultivation of around 200 new varieties of beans. FoodSec-Semence/SANOI
The FoodSec-Semence/SANOI regional project aims to revitalise the regional sector of certified seeds of elite plant varieties consisting essentially of leguminous, solanaceous and cereal crops in the context of food and nutrition security and climate change adaptation.
The key partners in the project include Mauritius, Madagascar, Comoros and Seychelles. In Mauritius, the general aim is to strengthen the potato and bean seed sectors by giving access to growers to certified and disease-free planting materials.
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